Bedtime Meditations

I'm Samantha, a kids and family mindfulness expert. Bedtime can be a really challenging time for many parents, and you may find it to be even more difficult now that we're spending more time at home. Kids tend to struggle with the transition from the excitement of the day into a more restful state at night. So today, I'm going to share a couple of meditation techniques that I hope you you and your kids can use to relax at bedtime in a really fun and soothing way. But first, let's do a short exercise. Welcome back, let's jump right in. It can be hard for anyone to sleep when we still have lots of thoughts in our minds. And this is especially true for kids. Now that we're spending more of our days at home, it's important to work with your kids on developing healthy bedtime routines. Sit down with your family, and make a list of all the things that help them to wind down, and fall asleep. These might be things like taking a warm bath, drinking a warm cup of tea, or maybe turning down the lights, or turning off technology 30 minutes before bedtime. Making your child a part of this process will help them to start to think about things that help them calm down and rest, as they transition into sleep mode at night. But even with a strong bedtime routine, some nights, it just may be more challenging for them to calm their active mind. So I'm going to share a few meditation techniques that'll hopefully have your little ones snoozing in no time. These can be done on with a favorite stuffed animal in hand, or while listening to soothing music that your child enjoys. (soft music) A great activity to try is a simple standing meditation. This is a nice way to get your kids to think about shifting their minds from all the excitement of the day into a more present and restful state at night. Start by having your child stand still, and close their eyes. Invite them to begin slowly shifting their weight from side to side. And anytime their minds begin to wander, ask them to focus on the feeling of their feet pressing into the floor. In using the feet as a point of focus, we're bringing their attention to the farthest point from their head. So this is a really concrete way to think about slowing down their minds as they get ready for bed. (soft music) This next activity is what I like to call a butterfly body scan. This modification to the traditional body scan technique gives kids an imaginative and concrete way to focus with how they're feeling. Instead of broadly asking your child to think about how each body part feels, invite your child to start by imagining a butterfly landing on their shoulder. As you continue to name each part of the body, ask your child to imagine the...